


The Avonlea Story Club Presents...

by marvelousmsmol



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrinette | Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Anne of Green Gables AU, F/M, Fic within a Fic, Ladynoir | Adrien Agreste as Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng as Ladybug, Reverse Crush (Miraculous Ladybug)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-05
Updated: 2020-05-05
Packaged: 2021-03-03 00:22:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24025774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marvelousmsmol/pseuds/marvelousmsmol
Summary: When a young, orphaned girl named Marinette Dupain is adopted by a couple living in the French village of Avonlea, her life changes for the better. She makes friends with Alya Cesaire, the daughter of one of the town's most respected families, finds a place for herself at school, and may or may not have mixed feelings towards the town's golden boy, Adrien Agreste.All the while, the members of the Avonlea Story Club weave a tale from their imagination of a princess determined to save her kingdom, her loyal knight and protector, and her trusted friends and advisors.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 4
Kudos: 20





	1. The Tales of the Ladybug and Chat Noir pt 1

The question of why a young girl was waiting at the train station all alone was soon answered when Mister Wang Fu, Avonlea’s very own eccentric, arrived to collect her a little while after she had arrived. Those that had seen the event take place remarked that it was odd, though in character, that Mister Fu and his wife Marianne had taken in an orphan. The couple certainly wasn’t young in years but had never had children of their own. It was clear that the bright and headstrong girl that had been delivered to them was a perfect match for the residents of Green Gables, even if she wasn’t exactly what they were looking for. 

Marinette Dupain was enchanted by her new home, a peaceful, countryside farm with fields that stretched for miles and a forest full of mysteries for her to uncover. 

“This is the most gorgeous place I’ve ever seen,” Marinette remarked when she and Mister Fu had arrived back at Green Gables. “Don’t you think so, too? You must feel very lucky to get to live somewhere so magnificent.”  
Mister Fu smiled and nodded. Marinette realized that he was a man of few words, but she didn’t mind. It was easy enough for her to fill the gaps of silence herself, and she didn’t mind taking the lead in a conversation. 

“It is a very nice place, I suppose,” Mister Fu said. “I haven’t much thought about it before.”  
Marinette was interrupted from her next sentence when the back door of the house opened suddenly. In walked a woman, who Marinette immediately thought was very proper, reminding her, unfortunately, of the head of the orphanage. 

“Fu,” The woman said. “Who is this?”

“Hello, I’m Marinette Dupain.” Marinette walked over to the woman with a bright smile, enthusiastically extending her hand in greeting. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“This is the child from the orphanage,” Fu explained to Marianne, who had passed by Marinette without a word to her. “They sent a girl.”

“Well, I can see that,” Marianne said. “I thought we had asked them for a boy.”

“You were hoping for a boy instead,” Marinette asked. “I’d be happy to oblige you if you desired. I could cut my hair shorter, it’s happened before. That’s why I have to put my hair up in pigtails. They aren’t long enough for braids. And, I wouldn’t mind wearing trousers. I’ve often thought that they must be much more freeing than a dress. I wouldn’t mind pretending to be a boy, really, if that’s what you were hoping for. I’m no strange to hard work, and I’d even be extremely interested in learning the inner workings of farming on land like this. I’m sure it must be fascinating, and you could teach me a whole lot-”

“That won’t be necessary,” Marianne said. “We needed a boy to help with the work since isn’t getting harder for Fu to do it one his own-”

“What a nice, roundabout way of saying I’m getting old, my dear,” Mister Fu said with a smile and a wink to Marinette.

“-Though, I suppose, we could let you stay,” Marianne said. “On a trial basis, mind you.”

“Oh, thank you!” Marinette beamed. “Thank you so much. I’m very grateful to get to stay in such a lovely home, and I promise I’ll be wonderful help.”

Marianne sighed, but there was a hint of a smile on her face. “Well, I’m going to have to write a note for you to take to the teacher when you go to school tomorrow. We told him to expect a new boy student, but I suppose it won’t be so different.”

Marinette could barely contain her excitement, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. “School?!”

***************

Having hardly slept a wink the night before, Marinette approached the little schoolhouse with determination. She wanted to make friends, to impress her teacher, and to learn more about subjects she had only read about in books. When she entered and hung her coat on a hook, she did a quick sweep of the room. Many students were still roaming about, as class hadn’t officially started yet, but some were already sitting in their seats. Marinette suddenly felt the dread of not knowing where to go. She spied one open spot next to a blonde girl and thought it couldn’t hurt to ask. 

Marinette walked around to the front of the shared desk, trying to see as happy and friendly as could be. 

“Hello,” Marinette greeted. The girl looked Marinette up and down, a mixture of confusion and disdain on her face. “Is this seat taken? I’m not sure where to sit.”

“If you had any sense at all you’d see that clearly it is,” The girl said, scoffing. “Sabrina and I sit here every day together.”

“Oh, sorry,” Marinette said. “I’m new and -”   


“Like I care,” The girl said and waved her off. She looked away, like the second she took her eyes off of her, Marinette didn’t even exist anymore. 

“Don’t worry,” Another girl said. Marinette turned around to see another girl patting the seat next to her. “Chloe is always like that, but this seat is open.”

The sadness Marinette had felt at her first failed attempt of trying to make a friend quickly feel away as the girl smiled at her. Marinette took the seat, thankful to have been saved from humiliation. 

“I’m Alya Cesaire, by the way,” She said.

“Marinette Dupain.”

A man walked in from the backroom, and Marinette suddenly remembered the not Marianne had given her.

“Is that the teacher,” Marinette asked Alya.

“Yes, Mr. Damocles,” Alya said with a nod.

“Great,” Marinette said standing up from her seat. “I have something for him from my guardians.”

“Guardians,” Alya asked, but Marinette was already walking away towards the front of the room.

“Psst,” Chloe whispered from behind Alya, making the girl narrowed her eyes. It seemed Chloe was cooking up a scheme again, which was never a good thing. “Kim, give Sabrina the gum you were chewing earlier.”

“What,” Kim asked. “Why should I?”

“And just what are you planning on doing with that gum, Chloe,” Alya said, turning around to face her. 

“Nothing that concerns you,” Chloe said, not even giving her a second glance. “Kim, the gum. Now.”

With a groan of annoyance, Kim spat out the gum into the napkin Sabrina was holding in her hand. Sabrina closed her eyes, doing as she was told, though with a great amount of disdain. Chloe snapped her fingers, point to the spot on the bench beside Alya. Sabrina quickly complied with the request, dumping the gum out of the napkin and onto the empty seat. 

“Hey,” Alya shouted in protest. “You can’t do that!”   


“Please, I can do whatever I want,” Chloe said. “That new girl, Maritrash, or whatever, needs to learn what her place is, and it’s best to do it as soon as possible.”

“That’s cruel, Chloe,” Alya said. “She seems like a very nice girl.”

“Nice doesn’t matter if she’s wearing a dress like that.”

“Hey, what’s going on here,” A new voice said, joining in the chorus of Chloe and Alya arguing.

“Adrien,” Chloe shouted, completely losing all interest in whatever she was doing before. “You won’t believe the trash they let into this school, but, don’t worry. I’ve taken it upon myself to teach her what’s what.”

Adrien looked down at the bench beside Alya, noticing the gum sitting there. His eyes widened in surprise and he turned to Chloe with an angry look. “That isn’t very nice, Chloe. You can’t do stuff like that.”

Adrien bent down, reaching out to take the gum off the seat before Marinette got back and it got stuck to her dress. Alya smiled triumphantly, surprised that Adrien had taken her side, but he was nice, despite who he decided to be friends with. 

“What’s going on here?”

Adrien stood up, whirling around, and coming face to face with Marinette, who had just gotten back from talking to the teacher. She looked confused, glancing around at the different students that had crowded around to watch the unfolding events with great interest. Everyone was excited to see where this would lead. 

Marinette looked down noticing the gum on her seat. She looked back at Adrien, shocked. “You put that there!”

“What,” Adrien asked, waving his hands frantically. “No, no, no, no, no. No. I was just-”

“How awful,” Marinette said. “I can’t believe anyone would do such a thing!”

Dejected, Marinette pulled out her old handkerchief and picked the gum up off her seat, wrapping it up in the fabric. She took her seat, and kept her eyes downcast, looking at her hands folded in her lap. The utter disappointment she felt towards her failed first day of school ran deep, and tears welled up in her eyes, though she worked hard not to show it. 

Everyone was quiet, even Adrien, who noticed the way Marinette had closed herself off from everyone around her. He decided not to refute it anymore, at least not now. 

Mr. Damocles cleared his throat and announced the beginning of class. They would all have to take their seats for now, and not even Alya had had enough time to tell Marinette what had actually happened. 

The lesson went on, and though Marinette would have usually been excited for gain new information about a variety of things, she found no joy in it. It was strange that one moment could ruin a day so quickly, but she had often found it happening to her frequently in her life. The orphanage had created the rule for her. Why should she have believed that this new place would become the exception?

“Psst,” Adrien whispered from the seat across the aisle and one behind Marinette’s. “Hey, pigtails.”

Marinette kept her eyes facing front. 

“Pigtails,” Adrien tried again, but she still didn’t acknowledge him.

Mr. Damocles turned his back to the room, and Adrien sneaked out of his seat and crossed the aisle, kneeling right next to Marinette. Even now, being so close to her, she still didn’t look at him. 

“Pigtails, hey,” Adrien said. He suddenly felt frustration creep up in his mind and the next moment grabbed one side of Marinette’s hair and tugged. 

Marinette screamed in shock, and, almost on instinct, grabbed her slate in one hand and whacked Adrien on the side of his head. The boy was knocked down from his kneeling position and tumbled onto the floor. To her surprise, Marinette found that her slate had cracked from the force she had hit him with, and suddenly felt the guilt well up inside her. 

“Ms. Dupain,” Mr. Damocles shouted from the front of the room. “Explain yourself.”

“I- I-” Marinette struggled to find the words.

Adrien stood to his feet, brushing the dust off of his trousers. “It’s my fault, Mr. Damocles. I pulled her hair.”   


“While that is wrong, too, Mr. Agreste,” Mr. Damocles said. “Ms. Dupain still engaged in an act of violence.”

“I harassed her,” Adrien said. “She only acted accordingly, so I accept full responsibility.”   


“Still-”   


“KIM,” A voice from the back of the room shouted. “CUT IT OUT!”   


Mr. Damocles turned his attention to the back of the room where Ivan and Kim were grappling for a piece of paper. Ivan had Kim by the collar of his shirt, his other hand clenched tightly in a fist. 

“Mr. Bruel,” Mr. Damocles shouted. “Really what has gotten into you moronic children today?!”

**********

Fortunately, the rest of the school day passed without further incident, and Mr. Damocles had gotten so focused on the fight that had almost broke out between Ivan and Kim that Marinette and Adrien had both escaped punishment. While Marinette hadn’t wanted to get in trouble, Adrien had both put gum on her seat and pulled her hair, and nothing had been done about the matter. As soon as school was over, she quickly grabbed her coat and went outside, ready to get back to Green Gables and try and have a better day tomorrow. 

“Hey, wait up,” Alya called, running to catch up to Marinette. “You and I are headed the same way, so we should walk together.”

Marinette smiled, happy to find that she at least had one friend. 

“Thank you for giving me a place to sit today,” Marinette said. 

“No problem,” Alya said. “And, I’m sorry about Chloe. She can be a real pain in the neck. You should know that it was all her. The gum, I mean. Adrien had nothing to do with it. Though, I don’t know what he was thinking of pulling your hair like that. He usually never does things like that.”

“You don’t have to try and speak on his behalf,” Marinette said stiffly. “He might not have been behind the gum, but I can’t forgive him for pulling my hair, and certainly not for calling me pigtails.”

“You may be right about that,” Alya said. They walked along in silence for a moment until Alya started up the conversation again. “So, Marinette, what do you like to do?”

“I like to write stories,” Marinette said. “And read. Read and write mostly. Do you like Jane Austen? She’s my favorite.”  
“Mother wouldn’t let me, but I snuck the books into my room and read them at night after my parents had gone to sleep,” Alya said. “I want to be a writer to, but Mother says it’s undignified.”

“We should write together,” Marinette suggested. “We could do it in secret! That way you wouldn’t get in trouble, and secret societies are quite incredible. I’ve always wanted to be apart of one.”

“A secret society,” Alya said, pondering the idea. “That sounds great! We can start today! I’m not expected home right away. Are you?”

“It’s not a long walk, and I don’t think my guardians would mind if I dilly-dallied a little,” Marinette said. She and Alya walked off the path a little way and took a seat next to one another on the stump of an old tree. Marinette pulled paper and a pencil out of her bag, using her now broken slate to write on. “What should we write first?”

“Write me one of the stories that you would normally write,” Alya said. “I want to hear what you can come up with.”

“Well,” Marinette said, tapping the pencil to her chin. With a burst of inspiration, she began scribbling on the page, her mind moving at a mile a minute. “I always find that the best stories come from the moments you take from real life…”

Marinette finished the first paragraph of her story after a minute. Alya leaned over her shoulder, intrigued by what she had come up with. “Read it out loud to me.”

Marinette cleared her throat and began. “ _ Once upon a time, there lived a beautiful Princess named Ladybug-” _

“Who’s Ladybug,” Alya asked. “How did you come up with that?”

“She’s a character I’ve written about for a long time now,” Marinette said.  _ “The Princess loved her Kingdom deeply and wanted to protect it at all cost, so she decided she would become a knight and defeat the great evil of the land, Hawkmoth. Hawkmoth had the power to turn even the kindest people into villains, controlling them for his own personal gain. Ladybug set out to stop him, fighting his villains along the way, with the help of her best friend, Rena-  _ that’s going to be you, I’ve decided-  _ who knew everything about the land and would help Ladybug come up with her daring schemes.” _

“Rena seems like she could be very helpful, and very amazing if I do say so myself,” Alya said with a giggle. “But, don’t you think that Ladybug should have another knight with her? Someone, to help her fight Hawkmoth’s villains?”   


“Ladybug doesn’t need a sidekick,” Marinette said. Alya frowned and snatched the pencil and paper away from Marinette. 

“Okay, this is better,” Alya said once she had finished writing.  _ “Ladybug was joined by Rena, her most trusted advisor, and the dashing Chat Noir, a knight who had pledged to serve Ladybug until his dying breath. They were complete opposites. Chat Noir was like the day with shining, golden hair, while Ladybug was like the night, with dark, flowing hair and blue eyes that rivaled the bright glow of the moon. Together Ladybug and Chat Noir were unstoppable.” _

“Okay, where did you get that description of Chat Noir from,” Marinette asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

__ Alya smiled slyly. “Nowhere in particular. I just made it up.”   


“Well, fine,” Marinette said. “We’ll add Chat Noir into the story.”

Marinette picked up her pencil again, thinking for a moment before taking Ladybug, Chat Noir, and Rena on their first adventure. 

_ “One day, the famed trio set out to battle a new villain Hawkmoth had created. Though they did not know where the road ahead would lead them, they were not afraid, and ready to take on a new adventure as long as they stayed by each other’s sides…” _


	2. The Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir pt 2

“Hey, Marinette,” Alya called as she jogged down the path towards her new friend. “Wait for me!”  
Marinette stopped and waited for Alya to catch up with her. She smiled brightly. “Good morning.”

“Morning to you too,” Alya said a little out of breath. “I’ve been calling your name for the past few minutes. Where’s your head at today?”

“I want to make a better impression,” Marinette said with a sigh. “Yesterday did not go exactly as planned.”  
“Don’t worry about Chloe, or Adrien, or anyone else,” Alya said. “I’ve got your back. We’re friends now, which means we’ll always stand up for each other no matter what.”

Alya stopped walking as they reached the edge of the schoolyard, pulling on Marinette’s arm to make her stay back with her. She held up her hand, her pinky finger extended. “Come on, we have to seal it with a promise. Pinky swear that you and I will be best friends forever.”   


“Best friends forever,” Marinette said. The girls giggled, bright smiles on their faces as they intertwined their fingers. 

A loud crash came from the back of the schoolhouse, and all the kids out front ran around to see what had caused the noise. The group of students formed a half-circle, watching in silence as Ivan had Kim pressed up against the wall of the building, eyebrows knit together in an angry expression. 

“What are you going to Bruel, huh,” Kim asked. “You already got in trouble with Mr. Damocles yesterday. Are you looking to get expelled?”  
Ivan growled and raised his fist poised to strike. 

_ Rena was a very important ally to Ladybug. Her knowledge of the Kingdom helped the princess in many different situations. She could name every crop that was grown in the fields, knew the lineage of each of the houses of the nobility and obtained what might be construed as gossip from different sources throughout the land. Rena knew that all information was good information if you knew how to apply it correctly.  _

__

“They’ve been at each other’s throats forever,” Alya whispered to Marinette. “Honestly I’m surprised both of them haven’t been suspended from school yet.”  
“I can see why Ivan gets so angry,” Marinette said with a frown. 

“What do you mean,” Alya asked.

“Well,” Marinette said, watching the two with an analytical look. “I think that Kim’s been provoking Ivan. Ivan keeps getting in trouble for it, which isn’t right.”

“You can’t get Kim in trouble without proof,” Alya said crossing her arms over her chest. “And, Kim is a master at hiding his guilt.”

Adrien, who had arrived late, jogged up to the rest of the group when he noticed what was going on. He pushed his way through the other students and into the middle of the circle. Placing a gentle hand on Ivan’s shoulder, he tried to get the boy to lower his fist. Once Ivan had backed down, Adrien grabbed Kim and pulled him away from the wall. 

_ Chat Noir had noticed first that Lord Stoneheart and Lord  _ _ Dislocœur had become susceptible to the will of Hawkmoth. If they continued to fight with one another, they would be turned to his side. Chat Noir’s first priority was always to protect the princess, his lady. If he wanted to make it so Ladybug wouldn’t have to waste his time fighting these two to uncorrupt them from Hawkmoth’s influence, he would have to act quickly.  _

“The both of you need to cut it out now,” Adrien said. “Kim, you need to stop picking on Ivan. Otherwise, I’m going to Mr. Damocles.”   


Kim sniffled, keeping his eyes downcast. He didn't’ say anything before turning on his heel and walking back to the front of the building and into the schoolhouse. Adrien glanced around at the other students, and they soon dispersed as well. Alya began to walk along with them, looking back at Marinette who had moved an inch to follow.

“Go on ahead,” Marinette said. “Save my seat for me.”

“Of course,” Alya said. “Don’t be late.”

Soon, only Marinette, Ivan, and Adrien were left outside. Marinette looked away, refusing to acknowledge Adrien. He might have taken responsibility yesterday for the slate incident, but he hadn’t apologized to her personally. Adrien cleared his throat, looking between Ivan and Marinette in understanding. “Well, I’ll see you inside, Ivan,” Adrien said. He turned to Marinette, a dashing smile appearing on his face. “Good morning, Miss Pigtails.”

With the tip of his hat, Adrien left. Marinette grumbled. She couldn’t believe he had teased her like that, but that wasn’t what Marinette wanted to be focusing on now. She had stayed back after everyone had left for a reason. 

“Ivan, I don’t think we’ve been properly introduced yet,” Marinette said, holding out her hand. “I’m Marinette Dupain.”

Ivan didn’t respond and didn’t take her hand. Awkwardly, Marinette dropped it back to her side. Clearly, Ivan was very hurt by Kim’s teasing, and Marinette could sense that he might feel a little guilty too for pushing Kim up against the wall, even though he had deserved it. 

“Do you want to talk about what’s going on,” Marinette said. “I’m a pretty good listener you know, and I just go here, so I’m not biased. It might be nice to tell your side of the story to someone who can offer advice and not their opinion.”

Ivan folded his arms over his chest defensively, but let out a sigh, as the hard expression on his face softened. “Kim keeps making fun of me,” He said. Marinette tried to push down the excited that she had been right. She was almost surprised that Ivan was so willingly talking about his troubles. “I- I wanted to give this poem I wrote to Mylene, but he stole it the other day. Kim told me that no one would ever like me or want to court me.”   


“Don’t listen to him, Ivan,” Marinette said. “You wrote Mylene a poem. That’s really sweet. Any girl would be happy to receive such a nice gesture. Do you remember what you wrote? Maybe you could copy it down and give it to Mylene. You shouldn’t let what Kim says stop you.”   


Ivan looked up from the ground, a little more hopeful than before. “You really think so?”

“Of course,” Marinette said. “I’m not sure Kim could come up with something as nice as a love poem for a sweetheart. Mylene would be very happy to get to read it.”   


“Thanks, Marinette,” Ivan said and extended his hand for the handshake he had denied before.

“You’re welcome,” Marinette said shaking his hand. “Come on, let’s get to class.”

*******

During class, Marinette had looked back to see Ivan writing something on a piece of paper while Mr. Damocles. She smiled, knowing that he must have taken her advice and was rewriting the love poem. When everyone had exited the schoolhouse at the end of the day, Marinette watched in excitement as Ivan nervously made his way over to Mylene. Marinette tugged on the sleeve of Alya’s dress, pointing out what was about to take place. 

“Mylene,” Ivan said, getting her attention. He held out the neatly folded piece of paper. “This is for you.”

Mylene took the paper with a smile, unfolding it, her eyes skimming over the contents. As she read, the smile on her face grew bigger, and a pink color began to cover her cheeks. “Ivan this is-” Mylene stuttered. The other girls around her began gossiping about this turn of events. “This is beautiful. Thank you. Thank you very much.”

The whole class gasped in surprise as Mylene stood up on her tips toes and placed a chaste kiss on Ivan’s cheek. Ivan’s face turned a bright shade of red, and he froze in place, just as surprised by the gesture as everyone else was. 

_ It had happened without warning, Lord Stoneheart and Lord  _ _ Dislocœur had met on the battlefield for a duel. In Lord Stoneheart’s anger, he had become corrupted by Hawkmoth. Ladybug was the only one capable of stopping this now. The magical earrings that she had been gifted in order to help protect the kingdom were the only things that could cure Lord Stoneheart of the wickedness placed in his heart, but it was dangerous for her to fight with them, as they were exactly what Hawkmoth was after.  _

Suddenly, a loud bark of laughter broke out. Marinette turned around to see Kim laughing. She frowned, hoping that Kim wouldn’t try to make fun of Ivan for this, but it was too late to try and stop that.

“Really,” Kim said, in between bouts of laughter. “You’d really want to go out with this oaf?!”

_ Ladybug knew that she would have to stop this battle between the two Lords-  _ they should have magic powers, don’t you think-  _ and she called upon her… Lucky Charm! _

“Leave him alone,” Marinette spoke up, stepping in between Ivan and Kim with a determined look on her face. “You have no right to say that!”  
Kim towered over Marinette, a harsh glare spreading across his face. “What are you going to do about it?”

_ Loyal as ever, Chat Noir went to Ladybug’s side, prepared to fight on her behalf.  _

Marinette opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted as she noticed someone was now standing by her side. “She’s right Kim,” Adrien said. “You don’t have the right to say those things to Ivan, and we’re not going to tolerate your rudeness anymore.”

Marinette looked at Adrien in confusion, wondering why he had come to her aid. Kim didn’t tower over Adrien like he did her, so they were much more evenly matched. Marinette doubted that Kim would seriously do anything to hurt her, but she would still admit that it was a little scary having someone bigger than her trying to tear her down. 

For some reason, Marinette felt stronger with Adrien by her side. 

“Apologize to Ivan, Kim,” Marinette said. 

Kim scoffed. “No way, I’m not going to do what a little, trashy girl tells me to.”

“That’s going too far,” Adrien shouted, his hands clenching into fists. Marinette knew that Mr. Damocles was still in the schoolhouse, and if a fight broke out they would all get in trouble. Kim was gearing up to punch Adrien, too, and Marinette did the only thing she could think of. She stopped on Kim’s foot with all of her strength.

_ Chat Noir was always prepared to use the power gifted to him by the magical ring he wore, but it was dangerous to do so. The power of destruction, to match Ladybug’s creation, should not be taken lightly. As such, Ladybug would do anything to make sure he would use it only when necessary. _

Kim yelped in pain, holding his injured foot in his hands. He jumped up and down on his standing leg, and though he was trying to hide the amount of pain he was in, Marinette knew exactly how much force she had used.

“I don’t tolerate people saying mean things about others,” Marinette said. “And I certainly don’t tolerate mean things being said about me.”

The others in the class looked at Marinette in awe, while, still by her side, Adrien wore a huge grin on his face. Once Kim had recovered, the mood shifted again, and Adrien and Marinette stared Kim down, challenging him to do something.

“Whatever,” Kim said. He turned on his heel and started walking off towards home. 

_ Ladybug managed to stop the two lords from fighting, but there was still one problem left. Pointing her sword at Lord Stoneheart’s chest, she called upon her powers. “The heart of man shall not be turned evil by you any longer!”  _

_ Her sword glowed with magnificent light. Ladybug plunged the metal into his chest, but it did not break his skin or spill blood. “Miraculous Ladybug!” _

The other students started to disperse not long after. Ivan had offered to walk Mylene home and she quickly accepted. Marinette had started to head off towards Alya, but noticed that she was already leaving.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Alya called back to her and gestured for Marinette to turn around, a sly smile on her face. 

Marinette groaned, knowing that Adrien was still standing there. She contemplated just walking away, but if she stayed, and if she was lucky, she might actually get an apology for yesterday.

“It, uh, it looks like it’s going to rain,” Adrien said. 

“Yes,” Marinette said stiffly. “I suppose it does.”

The sound of a carriage pulling up stopped Adrien from talking again. A large man climbed down from the driver’s seat and opened one of the carriage doors, revealing a stern looking woman inside. Adrien sighed. “Looks like father sent a carriage for me today,” He said. Adrien turned back to Marinette. After a moment, he held out the umbrella he was carrying to her. “Here, you’ll need this more than I for the walk home.”

“I’ll be quite alright,” Marinette said. “Thank you.”

Adrien laughed and pressed the umbrella into her hands. “You really are stubborn aren’t you,” He said. “Just take it. Consider it a loan. It’s the least I could do for pulling your hair yesterday.”

“Isn’t there something else you’d like apologize for,” Marinette said.

“If you’re talking about the gum on your seat, that wasn’t me, but I’ll apologize on Chloe’s behalf,” Adrien said. When Marinette didn’t answer, Adrien gave her a polite nod and starting walking towards his carriage. Only a few steps away, Adrien turned back. “Hey, it was pretty amazing what you did. Standing up for Ivan, I mean. Sorry, I hadn’t stepped in sooner, but we make a great team, don’t you think?”

Adrien held up his hand in a fist. “ _ Bien joue.” _

Marinette shifted the umbrella to her other hand, trying to hide the hint of a smile on her face as she returned the gesture. She wasn’t sure how long their hands had stayed touching, but it felt like forever until Adrien pulled away. “See you tomorrow, Pigtails.”

He waved back at her as he left, and Marinette stayed frozen in place for a moment. Perhaps Adrien really was sweet, but that couldn’t be true. He was still calling her that nickname. He was still making fun of her. Marinette shook her head. 

No, Adrien was not her friend. Everyone else could swoon over him as much as they liked but she wouldn’t be swayed. 

Marinette walked home, very pleased with how her second day of school ended up. The people here were kind, and she was very lucky to have such a great home now. She wouldn’t give up her place here so easily. 

**Author's Note:**

> find me on tumblr: @marvelousmsmol


End file.
